LBYM Question

[YVRRocketSurgery]

I think the over-riding factors for the missus and I to LBYM are:

1. Cutting down on discretionary consumer purchases by analyzing if what we're buying is really going to benefit us or make us happy for a period relative to the cost of the item. Trying not to buy stuff that will end up not being used and essentially add clutter in the house. However, we generally don't sweat about a $5 purchase. We'll take advantage of sales but similar criteria applies.

2. We track our spend and analyze where we can become more cost efficient for certain spends.
Food: We try to cook more at home and recreate dishes that we've eaten at restos
Electricity bill: LED light have significantly reduced our bill
Insurance: We've raised the deductible for certain coverage as we're comfortable paying out of pocket for certain issues.
TV: Not ready to cut the cord but have reduced channels after analyzing what we watch.
Car: We went from 2 cars to 1 plus a car sharing program.
Travel: We're generally value travelers. We'll take advantage of seat sales, stay at budget accommodations as we're only there to sleep, take local transit, eat street food, etc.

 

[Nemo2]

Eeeeeeeuuuuuuu

I guess this is not the time to raise the subject of reused TP?

 

[Car-Guy]

my lbym is using wilson golf balls and not buying new golf equipment every year

I never consider myself a lbym type (yes, probably an outlier on this forum) but there may be hope for me yet. I absolutely refuse to pay good money for any golf equipment. Think of all the money I've saved by not buying golf balls, golf clubs, bags, carts, clothes, misc equipment, green fees, etc all these years. Maybe I am more of a lbym type than I thought,,,,, or maybe I just don't like golf.

 

[pacergal]

Every lightbulb is now LED, replaced 15 year old dishwasher, refrigerator, furnace and water heater to the most energy efficient ones available in the past two years. Electric and natural gas bills down significantly. Most recent car is a hybrid, only use one tank of gas every month or so, and we still drive quite a bit. Enjoy cooking at home, but when DH and I go out for meals, usually go at lunch as it is much cheaper and frequently split the main dish. Do enjoy checking local Value village for clothes--only buy those that are new and still have store tags on--usual price $4.99-$10.99 for designer brands. Buy family value packaged US Prime meats and use Food saver to repackage smaller amounts to freeze, or look in the discount section--most meats priced 50% or more off--only because sell by date is soon. Use these meats right away and save $$.

 

[Car-Guy]

Coffee filters can be reused.
[emoji2]

They make coffee filters

 

[RobbieB]

No coffee filters for me. No pods either.

I just fill the hopper of the superautomatic with beans and push the button and the coffee comes out the nozzle.

Simple fast easy and cheap -

 

[travelover]

PagePlus cell phone, $2.50 a month.

Google Voice with Hangouts to make free unlimited calls anywhere in USA from my PC

OTA television.

 

[Amethyst]

Saving money is important, but saving time is even more so. They aren't making any more time.

I decided, arbitrarily, that my time is worth $50 per hour (after tax). If jumping through hoops to "save money" ends up costing me more than $50 per hour, or saving me less than $50 per hour, I won't bother.

 

[travelover]

...........I decided, arbitrarily, that my time is worth $50 per hour (after tax)...........

Me, too. I write off my time spent here as a charitable deduction

 

[Ready]

We live in a nice home, drive nice cars, eat well, and have all of the latest technology gadgets. One might look at us and say we are big spenders. But the key factor to consider in LBYM is the M. Everybody's means are different. If you make $50K/year and you spend all $50K, you are not living below your means.

If you make $300K per year and spend $150K, you could easily argue that you are living below your means.

So when I read all of these comments, I have to remember that everyone is coming from a different base, which must be considered when comparing these posts.

 

[mystang52]

We live in a nice home, drive nice cars, eat well, and have all of the latest technology gadgets. One might look at us and say we are big spenders. But the key factor to consider in LBYM is the M. Everybody's means are different. If you make $50K/year and you spend all $50K, you are not living below your means.

If you make $300K per year and spend $150K, you could easily argue that you are living below your means.

So when I read all of these comments, I have to remember that everyone is coming from a different base, which must be considered when comparing these posts.

Bingo. We are not wealthy, but we are comfortable. We don't spend money recklessly, but if we can afford it and want it (whatever the "it" is) we'll buy it. But I have to confess if it's a big ticket item, a great deal of thought goes into it before deciding to buy it.

 

[coveredbridge]

Camelcamelcamel Amazon Price Tracker...allows you to view the price history of almost anything sold on Amazon and alert you when the item reaches your target price.

 

[RobbieB]

I know that I'm living below my means because I'm still stacking dough.

I could care less weather or not you are living below your means.

Means are means and spending is spending and all that really matters is having fun!

 

[brucethebroker]

Save money washing clothes using cold water, then hang items overnight (laundry room or nearby bathroom) to let them air dry. The next day, use "air fluff" mode on dryer. Works well on most clothing and saves $$ on hot water and drying costs. Really makes a difference when your home is all electric.

Good friend takes his own coffee mug to gas station to save 35 to 50 cents a cup. We use McDonalds "senior" coffee and soft drinks. Free refills.

Publix often has gas card promos. Spend $100 on groceries and buy a $50 gas card for $40. 20% savings-not bad.

Check out ebay for partial packages of dog flea treatment. The good stuff is expensive. People give up their dog and still have $25-$30 of individual flea treatments left-then sell them for cheap.

Public transportation at airport drops me off 1 mile from vacation home. Nice walk, and the bus ride is only $1.50 Sr. rate. Walk, ride bike and bus the rest of the week and save hundreds on car rentals each trip. Thousands a year by not keeping a "condo" car there.

Local business type bank offers 2 free "office type" offices and a 10 person conference room-nice safe place for Craigslist transactions. Free coffee, soft drinks and cookies. Mags and WSJ + local newspaper in small lounge with cable business news on TV. 2 computers. Nice place to take a break when running errands.

 

[NW-Bound]

...I find growing my own food tends to be much cheaper than buying fresh fruits/vegetables every week.

We grow food as a hobby and to get exercise. We don't do Fitbits. Maybe another benefit is the real organic stuff that comes from our garden. The food often tastes better.

But to save money? How can we beat tomatoes, onions, zucchinis, cucumbers, various other veggies sold for $1 for 3 lbs at the local market?

 

[brucethebroker]

We grow food as a hobby and to get exercise. We don't do Fitbits. Maybe another benefit is the real organic stuff that comes from our garden. The food often tastes better.

But to save money? How can we beat tomatoes, onions, zucchinis, cucumbers, various other veggies sold for $1 for 3 lbs at the local market?

Yeah, kind of our thinking too....never really enjoyed gardening anyway and finally gave it up after a couple of bad years in tomatos....

Makes a nice hobby for many people, though.

 

[Scuba]

Find simple things to enjoy. Also as others have said, spend on your priorities. And don't spend on the rest. Ditto on avoiding malls. Also avoid online impulse shopping.

 

[427Vette]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michaela
....
5. I've actually walked into Brooks Brothers (before a date) purchased a shirt or tie - and after the date - took it back and got my money back.
....
9. When staying at a hotel or work, I will take the toilet paper. Some people take towels and soaps. I try to get a roll of toilet paper for each day of my stays.

....I've been living this way so long that I cannot differentiate between cheap and frugal.

Cheers,

Michael

IMO you cross that thin line between frugal and cheap .... into "little white lie" fraud and theft.

+1

When you resort to thievery to be supreme tightwad you have definitely crossed that line. How is it that you suppose the hotel covers the cost of the extra a$$ wipe They build it into the cost of everyone else's room. So all of us are supplying your toilet paper. For all of my life I have only been using one side of my toilet paper. I am willing to send it to you for your use so you no longer have to operate outside of the law!

 

[Tetto]

1. Wife and I only drink water when we go out to Resturants.
2. Wife and I will order ONE large salad at Panera and ask the staff to put the contents in two bowls. Oh, we'll also ask the server for an extra baguette when he brings our salads.
3. I suffer from FOBO. "Fear of Better Offers" which really limits my spending. I feel like such a chump when I purchase something and subsequently (within a few days) find it for a cheaper price.
4. Typically take vacations in the fall - because airfare and hotels are cheaper. I always use a Govt ID at a leisure rate on Hotel stays.
5. I've actually walked into Brooks Brothers (before a date) purchased a shirt or tie - and after the date - took it back and got my money back.
6. Use of Walmart Savings Catcher on IPAD.
7. Consumer Cellular offers $15 a month for 250 minutes of phone service. If I exceed 250 minutes, the cost will increase by $5 for the entire month.
8. I receive the basic 26 cable stations but watch the entire cable package at our local clubhouse/activity center.
9. When staying at a hotel or work, I will take the toilet paper. Some people take towels and soaps. I try to get a roll of toilet paper for each day of my stays.
10. When I used to get Per Diem for work related travel - I was so fortunate to stay in hotels that included breakfast in that I would always be able to pocket the extra meal per-diem.

I could go on - but needless to say my frugality is a lifestyle that I have conditioned myself to and I've been living this way so long that I cannot differentiate between cheap and frugal.

Cheers,

Michael

Wow! My wife sometimes calls me cheap, but in comparison to this^, I roll like a rock star!!

Btw, have done the per diem thing in the past; I used to travel for up to a month at a time to very expensive places, but I'd always come home with an extra $1500 in travelers checks...

 

[atmsmshr]

Standing in line yesterday asking for the 69 cent discount for item at the grocery store that I swear was posted on the display case - I stopped the clerk from a lookup much to the relief of people behind me.

My LBYM is usually reserved for the big ticket items (.$100) - but will snag the lower cost items whenever they appear.

However, some of the postings in this thread make my spending habits look like a drunken sailor on a liberty payday.

 

[travelover]

...........Check out ebay for partial packages of dog flea treatment. The good stuff is expensive. People give up their dog and still have $25-$30 of individual flea treatments left-then sell them for cheap............

Another trick is to buy the extra large dog size and just use half at a time on your smaller dog. Twelve doses are the same price regardless of the dog size.

 

[panacea]

And for the really creative, you could combine some of these ideas... like buying toilet paper and then returning it to the store after you've used it. Or turning your underwear inside out and using as a coffee filter!

 

[Closet_Gamer]

We are LMBYM...Living MASSIVELY Below Our Means.

From the time we got married (deep in debt) we would take raises and break them into 1/3s...1/3 to savings, 1/3 to debt, and 1/3 to lifestyle. Along the way when promotions or other things came along, we simply went crazy on the debt/savings side.

10 years ago I got into a fast growth career and pretty much held the line on expenses since the...we'll bank about 60% of our income this year even including a $50k remodel.

Otherwise we practice a rule from Millionaire Next Door: we're very sensitive to recurring expenses but fairly insensitive to one time costs. We like to travel with our kids so that's a big annually-repeated one time cost...but it could go over the side in case of bad income years.

Like compounded interest, compounding the gap between your income and your expenses is very, very powerful.

(Edit: and I ONLY buy used video games...30 hours of fun for $15...woohoo!)

 

[Backpacker]

Can't beat the library for saving$ on books

 

[COcheesehead]

And for the really creative, you could combine some of these ideas... like buying toilet paper and then returning it to the store after you've used it. Or turning your underwear inside out and using as a coffee filter!

Don't give people any ideas